Lighting is essential to homes, businesses, and any dwelling. It can be used simply to help people see at night or alternatively to highlight specific items or areas. Traditional bulbs are points of light and give off light in a sphere-like glow emanating from and surrounding the bulb. Sometimes, however, it would be more advantageous to have a line of lighting rather than a sphere. For example, if an individual needs to light a long space, a round bulb will create bright light at its origin but the light will dim over the length of the space. A single point of light provides interesting shadows, too. Certain space is preferably illuminated by linear light, e.g., desks, promotional product displays, or lighting for posters or other artwork. In these situations a line of light, rather than a traditional round bulb, will more evenly and consistently light the wider areas. Also, because a long bulb will create a line of light, it is ideal for highlighting a specific area or product. There are clearly many potential uses for a linear line of light, presented in a highly elegant, simple, unobtrusive and efficient manner. A lighting designer or other interior decorator can surely envision many situations where a line of light, contained in an upwardly extending and often angled, rod, is useful. When housed in a rectangular housing made of wood, the lighting element can be functional, function as a piece of furniture and be very attractive while maintaining full functionality.
In situations where a line of light would be advantageous, it is sometimes necessary to vary the amount of lighting or the angle of the light. For example, in the situation of desk lighting, a user might want one angle while he is working at the computer and another when he is reading from a book or material on the desk's top surface. Similarly, in a situation where lighting is used as an accent on a side table in a home, a user might want light from a lower elevation for reading but higher light for active conversation. Displays, in stores, trade shows, art galleries, public areas, etc. may want various available lines of light, too. The majority of linear or rod-shaped bulbs though is generally available only as overhead lighting, generally extending parallel to the ceiling, and therefore cannot be angularly adjusted. Those that do exist in adjustable table lamps are often not long enough to give the benefits of a substantially long and continuous line of light. Thus, it would be advantageous to provide such a line of lighting in an angularly adjustable form with respect to the floor so that a user can adjust and use the light at more than one height or angle. A rod of such linear light seems highly useful to the interior decorator and lighting designer. Many usages are envisioned.
Many lamps exist that are able to be moved and angled, yet few do so well and in an aesthetically pleasing manner. For example, some lamps have an adjustable height and a rotatable head, but are generally very limited at the angles at which they can give off light. On the other hand, many lamps have flexible or “goose” necks that are able to be positioned in a wide variety of angles, but the flexible necks are often unattractive. Because lamps are visible in a room, their appearance can contribute or take away from the décor in a room. Thus, the flexible, but unattractive lamps will be unacceptable to some people and in some environments.
The issues raised by lighting create a need for a lamp which provides a long and linear line of continuous light, capable of being angularly adjustable (so that it is not merely useful parallel to the ceiling, like office fluorescent lighting fixtures) that is also aesthetically pleasing. The present invention is directed to provide a lamp housed in an attractive wood case of slim profile using a set of bulbs that create a line of angled lighting. A wood housing, however, has dimensional tolerance issues as wood swells and shrinks with temperature and humidity and cannot be machined to the precision as metal and plastic components. A simple, elegant, small in foot print base plate of metal for supporting the wood rod or housing is seemingly desirable, too and allows for the holding of the wood case and the dimensional tolerances involved in a wood casing.
The base plate is preferably a simple rectangle plate (with or without rubber feet) sitting upon the floor. An asymmetrically arranged rectangular aperture is provided in the base plate, suitable for accepting the rod of the light. The base plate has an edge which, when the rod is passed therethrough and then tilted, maintains contact with the floor and thus provides an inclined surface. The rod of light thus extends angularly upwardly. The inclined surface has an aperture or hole passing therethrough which is the same shape and about the same size (but slightly larger) than the cross section of the rod of linear light. One end of the rod is passed through the aperture and that end of the rod abuts the floor. Opposed edges of the wood are held in the aperture of the inclined surface of the base plate. Preferably, a plastic snap-in insert is provided to the interior edges of the aperture of the base plate so that the outside of the rod is not cut nor scraped by the contact of the metal of the base plate with the smooth wood of the rod. According to another and preferred embodiment of the invention, the insert is itself coated with smooth felt-like fabric to facilitate the sliding of the rod with respect to the aperture and the frictional holding of the two relative to one another. Alternatively, the rod can be coated with a felt covering at the end which slips into and is held by the aperture of the base plate and/or within the insert within the aperture. Again, lining of the exterior of the rod with felt is primarily intended to be used for securement of the rods within the sockets of the knuckle element.
The mechanical cooperation of the rod and the aperture of the base plate secure the rod and allow the linear light of the rod to be set at different angles, enabling the height and angle of light to be desirably adjusted. The bulb is encased in a stylized, preferably wooden, structure that gives the invention a sleek, modern and warm look and feel.
In the event that a user desires a stationery option for multiple rods, the invention can further include a central hub with stylized rod-holding sockets for holding the lamps in a stationary yet inclined and angular position. Some embodiments of the sockets of the hub, also called a knuckle, include multiple upwardly and downwardly directed rod-holding sockets for supporting the rods in one central structure. The sockets, like the light producing rods and the housings, will be aesthetically pleasing so as to have a sleek and modern look as well. In one embodiment the multiple socketed knuckle, when used with three or more rods, is an illuminated tripod with three legs of linear light, all made by wood rods. In this embodiment, the tripod and the knuckle element may further support one, two or more additional upwardly extending and light-providing rods (of the same or different length). The sockets of the knuckle serve to mechanically and electrically connect the rods to the central hub and to one another. The hub is provided with wiring for connecting the same to a source of AC or DC power to drive and illuminate the lights of the rods. Also, in the preferred embodiment, the knuckle's sockets (three downwardly directed for accepting three rods to provide a tripod) are provided with male jacks for electrically connecting to the female jacks in the ends of the rods. Thus, when the rods are pushed into the rectangular (in cross section) sockets of the knuckle, the rods are held in place and the jacks are connected, electrically connecting the rods to the wiring for the AC or DC power. In addition, there is some “wiggle” room in the movement of the male jacks within the hub or knuckle to accommodate the insertion and securement, mechanically and electrically, of the rods, deemed desirable if not necessary as a consequence of the use of wood compositions for the rods.